#Finding inspiration

Network to learn from experts at companies you admire

Instead of trying to synthesize the advice from ten different people on a particular topic, Airbnb co-founder Brian Chesky identifies the one person who is a subject matter expert on a topic and goes directly to that person for advice. Chesky has proactively reached out to:

• The French Laundry to learn about hospitality and how the restaurant treats its customers and presents its cuisine
• Former CIA director George Tenet to learn about culture and how George gets people to feel committed in a place where everyone's a spy
• Zappos to learn about how they developed their culture
• Apple’s Jony Ive to learn about design
• LinkedIn’s Jeff Weiner to learn about the importance of removing underperforming managers
• Disney’s Bob Iger for advice on management
• Facebook's Sheryl Sandberg to talk about international expansion and the importance of empowering women leaders
• eBay's John Donahoe to discuss scaling operations and managing a board
• Salesforce.com's CEO Marc Benioff to learn how to push an executive team

Look for inspiration everywhere

To Steve Jobs, creativity was about connecting two unrelated things and bringing them together. As he has said, the best way to do that is to “expose yourself to the best things that humans have done and then try to bring those things into what you’re doing." And Apple did just that.

• Apple II's revolutionary mouse and graphical user interface (GUI) which included colorful icons and windows were originally created by Xerox.
• Apple II's molded plastic cases with smooth edges and muted colors were inspired by a Cuisinart food processor found at Macy's.
• The MagSafe power cord that kept Apple computers from falling to the ground if you tripped over the wire came from Japanese rice cookers.
• The iMac's swivel display attached to a stainless steel neck was inspired by a sunflower.
• The concierge-style greeter and the Genius Bar was inspired by the Four Seasons' concierge service and liquor bar.
• The Apple Store's minimalist display that showcases only a few products came from Williams-Sonoma, which was displaying only two toasters compared to Target's display of thirty-one.
• The Apple Store's personal shoppers were inspired by Nordstrom's personal shoppers.
• The iPod scrolling wheel was inspired by a phone made by Bang & Olufsen (B&O).

Draw inspiration from brands across all industries

Chick-fil-A leadership made it a habit to stop at every fast food operation and visit the headquarters of brands like Disney, Apple, Harley-Davidson, Southwest Airlines, and Zappos to understand each one's service philosophy.

They also took training courses from Horst Schulze, co-founder of The Ritz-Carlton. He suggested: "Don't look to be better than the other fast food restaurants. Those limited expectations will just weigh you down. Instead, aspire to the next level of service—restaurants with price points that are at least Chick-fil-A's, and build a service model that resembles that."

From there, Chick-fil-A drew inspiration from steak houses, grills, and restaurants that were three times their price point, borrowing ideas like:

• Out-front cooking, instead of out-of-sight cooking
• Fresh flowers on tables
• Umbrellas at the door on rainy days
• Providing freshly ground pepper and beverage refills at tables

Chick-fil-A even borrowed their iconic 'My pleasure' from The Ritz-Carlton.

Get out there and find inspiration from other businesses

It is a common practice at Starbucks to send staff out on reconnaissance missions to see how other businesses operate—not just coffee shops but any service business. Armed with notebooks, they observe and document everything: what they see, hear, taste, smell, and feel. They later brainstorm ideas on how to enhance the Starbucks Experience.

As former CEO Howard Schultz says: "When people can see things, feel things, interact with things, that is then when their minds actually begin to shift."

Study businesses from outside your industry

Former Umpqua CEO Ray Davis often sent his team on road trips to study companies with "a reputation for some sort of pizzazz." They were looking for unconventional ideas that could disrupt what they called "bank think." Ray explains, "I wanted to know about the senses they felt. What did they feel? What did they taste? What did they touch? These are the things that bankers don't normally give credibility to."

• By studying the Ritz-Carlton and how they provided every receipt on a silver tray, Umpqua began giving receipts on small wooden trays with an Umpqua chocolate.
• From Norstrom, they saw how "clerks would straighten shelves after customers looked through things, and when the customer wanted to buy something, they would take them to the cash register and cash them out."
• They gained ideas on how to greet people, display products, and create a community atmosphere from brands like Gap, Nike, Disney, Starbucks, and Restoration Hardware.